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Raphael hopped out and fished my keys from where they glinted in the snow using his sleeve.
“Can we tow it home?” I called with a grumble.
“Don’t even get out of the car,” Raphael ordered.
“Why not? I’m not going to leave it here. I need my car for work.”
“It’s a crime scene.”
“Is it?” I peered closer. “Could’ve been that someone hit black ice and slid into it, then opened my door to look for owner’s info.”
If it wasn’t for Bridgette’s video, I could’ve been convinced of that conclusion, but I’d already been on a paranoia jaunt this evening and doubt crept in.
My brother collected my shoe and the spilled papers from the ice. “Stay low in the seat, just in case you’re being watched. I’ll secure the car, and I won’t touch the handle or the frame in case it has a print. It isn’t roadworthy with that damage. We need to get it towed to a garage for repair.”
I muttered thanks and sank lower, my mind jumping elsewhere.
That was bad.
Jackson’s summary of my poorly thought-out kiss haunted me. Ridiculously, I’d thought he’d run to me because he wanted me. It seemed so stupid now, and his reaction showed me exactly what he felt about my act.
Didn’t it?
He’d kissed me back. Then told me it was bad.
Asshole.
Raphael circled the car. “Nothing else to see. We’ll head home.”
“Wait,” I said. “Can you grab my phone? It’s in the cupholder. At least it should be.”
God, what if the person who hit my car had taken it?
A strange and uncomfortable sense washed over me. Someone had been in there. It didn’t feel like my safe space anymore.
Bending into the Mini, Raphael whipped the device out, brandishing it.
“Thank fuck for that,” I whispered.
He snapped photos of the scene, then closed up the car with his elbow. “It’ll fry the electrics if we just leave it open to the elements,” he explained. “This way we can show the police how Jackson found it.”
If my brother noticed my slight quiver at his friend’s name, he didn’t comment.
We returned home in silence.
Our tower apartment sat on the right-hand side of Castle McRae, the imposing ancient structure owned by a family friend. Jackson had beat us back and was out of his vehicle, flagging us down outside the main entrance.
Raphael wound down his window.
Jackson spoke low, his gaze flitting over me. “Just in case we’re being watched, drive around the back and go in the rear entrance.”
I shivered at the subterfuge, shrinking lower in my seat while my brother did as asked. We parked up in the shelter of the heavy retaining wall, out of sight of anyone looking on, and entered via the kitchens. The castle was divided into several different apartments, but we managed to cross through the large, communal kitchens and the echoing great hall without seeing anyone. A narrow passageway at the back led to our tower door.
Up the spiral staircase we climbed, me at the front not thinking about the man who followed after my brother.
When we’d reached the top, a holler came from below.
“Ariel?” Daisy said.
